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Dr Margaret Wade-Lewis Center for History & Culture

The Dr. Margaret Wade-Lewis Center for History & Culture promotes understanding and appreciation of African American history and culture through education, community engagement, and cultural programming, fostering a more inclusive society.

Join your neighbors for a free discussion of James Baldwin&rsquo;s The Fire Next Time&nbsp;at Yah So Nice Caribbean Cuisine in New Paltz! &nbsp; Baldwin&#39;s landmark work of nonfiction, published in 1968, features two essays centered on the struggle for equal rights. Our discussion will be led by Albert Cook, who has been a member of the Social Studies Department at New Paltz High School for 25 years, where he currently teaches World History, AP American History, and Black History. He also has been an instructor in the Urban Education Initiative at Vassar College, where he co-taught classes on the Legacy of Dr. King, the History of Black Voter Disenfranchisement, and the History and Legacy of Mass Incarceration. He has lectured throughout the region on issues surrounding the history of African Cultures and the development of Race and Racism in North America, and serves on the Ulster County Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Together, we&rsquo;ll discuss Baldwin&rsquo;s essays, connecting to themes very much alive today. Whether you&rsquo;re new to Baldwin or returning to his work, your voice is welcome in this community conversation.&nbsp;You can join us even if you haven&#39;t read the book! Attend for one evening, or both. Register below to reserve your free spot and receive event details. 🗓️

MWLC Book Club: The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

Volunteer with us for our Ice Cream Social 2026 in celebration of the birthday of Dr. Margaret Wade-Lewis!

Ice Cream Social 2026 Volunteers

Volunteer with us for Juneteenth 2026 and help create a thoughtful day of remembrance, celebration, and learning. TK

Juneteenth 2026 Volunteers

Director&rsquo;s Circle 2026 brings together dedicated supporters who will help sustain the Dr. Margaret Wade-Lewis Center&rsquo;s work in preserving and sharing Black history and culture in the Hudson Valley. By joining us, you support public programs, the Ann Oliver House rehabilitation, and community outreach that honor Black scholars, artists, organizers, and everyday families. Please complete this form to confirm your commitment and help us plan meaningful educational and cultural initiatives for the year ahead.

Director's Circle 2026

Margaret Wade-Lewis Speaks is an empowering program for youth of all ages, where creativity, expression, and confidence take center stage.&nbsp;Led by MWLC Executive Director, Esi Lewis, the program provides young people the chance to develop public speaking skills, explore new ideas, and make their voices heard in a supportive environment. Offered in coordination with the SUNY New Paltz Department of Black Studies this coming fall, 2026. Help us build MWL Speaks and keep the program low-cost or free to participants and their families!&nbsp;And stay tuned for opportunities to hear from our young speakers.

Margaret Wade-Lewis Speaks is an empowering program for youth of all ages, where creativity, expression, and confidence take center stage. Led by MWLC Executive Director, Esi Lewis, the program provides young people the chance to develop public speaking skills, explore new ideas, and make their voices heard in a supportive environment. Offered in coordination with the SUNY New Paltz Department of Black Studies this coming fall, 2026.Help us build MWL Speaks and keep the program low-cost or free to participants and their families! And stay tuned for opportunities to hear from our young speakers.

Support Margaret Wade-Lewis Speaks

Join your neighbors for another though provoking discussion of Ntozake Shante&#39;s Sassafras, Cypress &amp; Indigo Sassafrass, Cypress &amp; Indigo is the story of three &quot;colored girls,&quot; three sisters and their mama from Charleston, South Carolina: Sassafrass, the oldest, a poet and a weaver like her mother, gone north to college, living with other artists in Los Angeles and trying to weave a life out of her work, her man, her memories and dreams; Cypress, the dancer, who leaves home to find new ways of moving and easing the contractions of her soul; Indigo, the youngest, still a child of Charleston&mdash;&quot;too much of the south in her&quot;&mdash;who lives in poetry, can talk to her dolls, and has a great gift of seeing the obvious magic of the world. Together, we&rsquo;ll discuss the poetry, letters, journal entries, and recipes combined in this novel to explore womanhood, the Black Arts Movement, female creativity, and ancestral spirituality. Your voice is welcome in this community conversation.&nbsp;Please join us even if you haven&#39;t read the book!&nbsp; Register below to reserve your free spot and receive event details. 🗓️

MWLC Book Club: Sassafras, Cypress & Indigo by Ntozake Shante

Join MWLC Executive Director, Esi Lewis, for a guided tour of Open for Unfinished Business led by artist Jean-Marc Superville Sovak. Uncovering overlooked histories of New Paltz, this unique showcase features artifacts from the MWLC collection, including original windows from the Margaret Clow House, built by Jacob Wynkoop, a pioneering Black builder who also built the Ann Oliver House (future home of the MWLC). Wynkoop is credited with constructing eight homes in the late 1800s, creating a vital neighborhood of free Black residents right here in New Paltz including the historic Ann Oliver House. This year the MWLC is begin the rehabilitation of this incredible piece of history to serve as the permanent home and office of the MWLC.&nbsp; We need your help to bring the Ann Oliver House back to life as we relaunch our capital campaign &quot;It Takes a Village&quot; to match the $750,000 we have already raised. Every dollar you contribute brings us closer to securing this permanent space for history, education, culture, and community.&nbsp;

Dr Margaret Wade-Lewis Center for History & Culture

Events

Events

MWLC Book Club: Sassafras, Cypress & Indigo by Ntozake Shante

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Museum Mixer

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